33.

Hulst vs. PR Builders G.R. No. 156364 (Sept. 25, 2008)

FACTS: Jacobus Bernhard Hulst (petitioner) and his spouse Ida Johanna Hulst-Van Ijzeren (Ida), Dutch nationals, entered into a Contract to Sell with PR Builders, Inc. (respondent), for the purchase of a 210-sq m residential unit in respondent's townhouse project in Barangay Niyugan, Laurel, Batangas. When respondent failed to comply with its verbal promise to complete the project by June 1995, the spouses Hulst filed before the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB) a complaint for rescission of contract with interest, damages and attorney's fees,

ISSUE: Whether or not the contract to purchase is valid.

HELD: No. Petitioner and his wife are foreign nationals who are disqualified under the Constitution from owning real property in their names. Section 7 of Article XII of the 1987 Constitution provides: Sec. 7. Save in cases of hereditary succession, no private lands shall be transferred or conveyed except to individuals, corporations, or associations qualified to acquire or hold lands of the public domain.

Ogarte, Anilyn C. LLB 4-C

34.

Republic v. CA 235 SCRA 567 [1994]

FACTS: In 1970, the spouses Juan and Juana de la Cruz, then Filipinos, bought the parcel of unregistered land in the Philippines on which they built a house which became their residence. In 1986, they migrated to Canada and became Canadian citizens. Thereafter, in 1990, they applied for the registration of the aforesaid land in their names which was opposed by the Republic. ISSUE: Should the application of the spouses de la Cruz be granted over the Republics opposition? HELD: Yes, the application should be granted. As a rule, the Constitution prohibits aliens from owning private lands in the Philippines. This rule, however, does not apply to the spouses Juan and Juana de la Cruz because at the time they acquired ownership over the land, albeit imperfect, they were still Filipino citizens. The application for registration is a mere confirmation of the imperfect title which the spouses have already acquired before they became Canadian citizens.

Ogarte, Anilyn C. LLB 4-C

56.

EASTERN ASSURANCE VS. LTFRB G. R. No. 149717 (Oct. 7, 2003)

FACTS:

The Board issued Memorandum Circular No. 99-011 fixing the insurance coverage of PUVs on the basis of the number of persons that may be killed or injured instead of the entire vehicle alone. The coverage is denominated as Passenger Accident Insurance Coverage (PAIC), which fixes the coverage of P50,000.00 per passenger. In order to make sure that future claims of PUV operators and passenger accident victims are paid within the required time, and in order to minimize, if not eliminate, fake certificates of cover and graft and corruption, as well as to ensure the payment of the proper taxes much needed by the government, as well as to create a computerized data bank without any cost to the government which is necessary for transport planning, the Board will only accept, as proof of compliance of this program, insurance policies/certificates of cover duly approved by the Insurance Commission specifically for this project, and issued by any of the two groups as authorized by the Board. Accordingly, as there is already one group duly authorized by the Board to participate in this program in the person of the Passenger Accident Managers, Inc. (PAMI for brevity), THERE IS A NEED TO FORM ANOTHER GROUP IN ORDER TO FULLY IMPLEMENT THE PROGRAM. All other insurance companies who wish to continue participating in the program, therefore, are hereby required to either join PAMI or form a second group. Petitioner contends that Memorandum Circular No. 2001-001 and the subsequent implementing Circulars violate the constitutional proscription against monopoly as well as unfair competition and combination in restraint of trade. Petitioner further argues that these were issued with grave abuse of discretion and without jurisdiction on the part of the LTFRB.

ISSUE: Whether or not the operation of monopolies is totally banned by the constitution.

HELD: The operation of monopolies is not totally banned by the Constitution. However, the State shall regulate them when public interest so requires. In the present case, the two consortia of insurance companies that have been authorized to issue passenger insurance policies are adequately regulated by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to protect the riding public. While individual insurance companies may somehow be adversely affected by this scheme, the paramount public interest involved must be upheld. In any event, all legitimate insurance companies are allowed to become members of the consortia. Thus, there is no restraint of trade or unfair competition involved.

Ogarte, Anilyn C. LLB 4-C